Getting married April 2023, will changing my W4 impact our tax filing strategy?

15 Thanks for the info! The W4 change makes sense, but I'm confused about whether we should file jointly or separately next year. Is there an easy way to figure out which would be better for our situation? And do we both need to update our W4s or just one of us?

8 For most couples, filing jointly is still beneficial despite the potential "marriage penalty." The best approach is to run the numbers both ways when tax time comes to see which results in a lower total tax. Some tax software makes this comparison easy. Yes, you both should update your W4s after marriage. The IRS Withholding Estimator I mentioned will walk you through exactly what to put on each form. It's designed specifically for two-income households and will help ensure you're withholding the right amount collectively.

5 Does this tool actually connect to the IRS systems or is it just another calculator? I've tried the IRS withholding calculator before but it was confusing as hell.

7 I'm also getting married mid-year! Did you find that you owed more taxes filing jointly? I make about 85k and my fiancé makes around 70k, so I'm wondering if we'd get hit with that "marriage penalty" thing the other commenter mentioned.

12 It doesn't connect directly to IRS systems, but it uses the same tax tables and calculations. The difference is that it explains everything in normal human language and shows you exactly where to put numbers on your W4. The IRS calculator is powerful but definitely confusing. We actually got a small refund because we followed the tool's advice. At your income levels, you might experience a small marriage penalty, but the tool will help you adjust your withholding to account for it. The key is that you both need to update your W4s - the old "claiming allowances" approach doesn't work well for two similar incomes.

3 Wait, this actually works? I thought it was impossible to get through to a real IRS person these days. How much does it cost? And did they actually have answers about W4 stuff or just general tax info?

10 This sounds sketchy tbh. Why would I pay some third party when I could just call the IRS directly? They're just exploiting the fact that the IRS is understaffed.

19 Yes, it really works! I was connected with an actual IRS employee who was able to answer all my specific W4 questions, including how to handle my mid-year marriage and what specific dollar amounts to put on the form. The service doesn't replace calling the IRS - it just handles the waiting for you. The IRS phone lines are completely overwhelmed right now, with hold times of 2+ hours when you can even get through at all. After trying to call myself multiple times and getting disconnected, using a service that held my place in line was absolutely worth it.

11 That's really smart! Did your wife have any issues with the timing of the name change with other stuff? Like health insurance or bank accounts? I'm trying to figure out the least painful way to handle all the name change logistics.

22 No issues at all! She continued using her maiden name legally until after we filed taxes in February. Then she changed her social security card first, followed by her driver's license, and finally started updating banks, credit cards, etc. The key is doing social security first, then everything else. For health insurance through our employers, she just informed HR that she'd be changing her name after tax season so they could make a note in the system. It was actually their suggestion to wait until after filing to avoid confusion.

16 Is it really that bad? My fiancé and I are in a similar income bracket (both around $75k) and getting married this summer. Should we maybe just file separately to avoid this penalty?

Filing separately rarely helps with the marriage penalty situation. The tax brackets for married filing separately are actually worse than single filer brackets in most cases. You'll likely still pay more total tax than when you were both single, just split between two returns instead of one. The real solution is proper withholding adjustment. Use the IRS withholding calculator or one of the tools mentioned above to figure out exactly how much extra to withhold. At $75k each, you're right in that zone where the penalty hits, but it's usually only a few hundred to maybe $1,500 extra per year - not the end of the world if you plan for it. The key is updating both your W4s after marriage and potentially having some additional amount withheld from each paycheck to cover the difference. Much better than getting surprised at tax time!